Machine shop hours....

[Samckitt]

Am I just a tight wad or did the cheese fall off this guys cracker......

I went into a machine shop wondering what it would cost to make some aluminum spacers. 8 of them 1" diameter, 1 7/8 long with a 7/16 hole thru, and 2 of them 1" diameter, 2 1/8" long with a 5/8" diameter shoulder 5/16 high on one end with a 7/16 hole thru. And he told me $300!

[astroracer]

I figure 3 to 4 hours at 60 dollars an hour = 240.00 He's not far off, depends on hourly rate and what he charges for set-up.
Mark

[Samckitt]

Really takes that long to bore & cut to length, & turn a 5/16 length down from 1" to 5/8?

[parsonsj]

Seems reasonable, given material, setup, machine time, and clean up.

[astroracer]

Really takes that long to bore & cut to length, & turn a 5/16 length down from 1" to 5/8?

Yes Sir, I look back at all of the machine time I have in my control arms. Probably 10 to 12 hours. It all takes time, unless of course, you have a 3 or 5 axis turning center then all of your time goes into the programming... it's all relative.

[parsonsj]

Right. It will cost $300 for your 10. $350 for 20. $400 for 40. $500 for 100. Or something like that.

[johngross]

I use to be a tool maker and have experience in this. A job shop in my area would have made these for $100 to $150. If you went to a shop where small quick runs aren't the norm then they will quote higher just "in case". There is a company that takes orders over the net for small runs that is reasonably priced and sends the parts right to your house. Surely someone will chime in with the companies name.

[k7king]

What kind of accuracy are you looking for. I might be able to make them for $200. It would be done on a manual lathe.
[email protected]

[Samckitt]

So my goal was to make something for less than what I had found a kit for. I guess it can't be done, so I am just going to buy the kit & be done.

[exwestracer]

So my goal was to make something for less than what I had found a kit for. I guess it can't be done, so I am just going to buy the kit & be done.

Just FYI Scot, you will almost ALWAYS find that to be the case. If a "kit" exists that will work without further modifications, it's probably the cheapest way to go. Parts don't go into production unless there is sufficient demand for a company to absorb all the setup and tooling costs mentioned above. Unless you've got a buddy that will build stuff for a "case of beer", kit pricing is tough to beat.

[Tony_SS]

Ugh... I'm needing something similar, it doesn't sound cheap... I'll stop by my local place and see what they say.

[Motorcitydak]

I found a local guy on craigslist that has a decent machine shop setup at his house. He does $45/hr. Just had him do 4 hours of work for me, changed $240. Maybe try not using a shop? Or get your own lathe and make all sorts of parts for yourself/friends. I really want to get my own mill